A drug originally developed to block the formation of blood vessels in tumors has been shown to overcome resistance to treatment with Gleevec in patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST). Known as SU11248, the drug offers patients with advanced GIST an important new treatment option. The results of this clinical trial may also give researchers fresh insights into the molecular mechanisms controlling the growth of these deadly tumors, according to study results presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for Clinical Oncology in New Orleans, La.
